Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Kabuki Korners and the Koolaid Keggers

Oh the agony; the so-called mind of this “gadfly and blogger extraordinaire” (thank you, Councilor Pols) reels with the opportunities for literary mischief presented by the theatrics of the current Brunswick budget process, and in particular, the Schools component of this spectacle of local governance.

As we’ve said before, you should never mess with the schoolies and the bookies, but the temptation is just too great after reading about and watching the annual Kabuki pageant, which features copious amounts of public Koolaid konsumption.  No GUI citations (Governing under the influence) have been issued that we know of, but citizens are warned to stand clear of those with pitchers of a red liquid, offering free pours, and during sappy hours, Koolaid shooters.

As for us, sleep has been lost, notes have been made, and the task before us has grown to the overwhelming stage.  So we’ve decided on a way to make things manageable.  Rather than write and publish one very lengthy essay, we are going to break things down to manageable segments, and post several shorter works as they come out of the hopper.  We’re thinking about titling these works “KKKK-X,” where X is a chapter number, in a manner of speaking.

The purpose of this particular post, then, is to set the ‘thematic’ stage for what will follow, so let’s begin.  You might think of this as the overture for the melodramatics that follow.

We read this passage recently, and it’s apropos the subject here:

… are masters in getting Americans to think with their hearts instead of their brains.  After all, emotions are easier to manipulate than facts.  And many truths are easier to ignore than acknowledge.  But not acknowledging reality doesn't change the reality.  And we ignore reality at our own peril, as we are now finding out on a daily basis.

Then, this all-time favorite:

“When school children start paying union dues, that's when I'll start representing the interests of school children.”

Albert Shanker - President of the United Federation of Teachers [1964-1984] & the American Federation of Teachers [1974-1997]

Something a bit more philosophical:

The Law of the Infinite Cornucopia, put forth by Polish philosopher Leszek Kołakowski suggests that for any given doctrine one wants to believe, there is never a shortage of arguments by which one can support it.

And finally, at least for now, this recent inspirational gem, to remind us of the principles that guide education professionals and their leaders:

It's not about kids, it’s about power  NEA General Counsel Bob Chanin Tells How It REALLY Is during his farewell Speech:

 

For more interesting follow-up, you can click on the underlined link just above the video and read the comments posted on that site.

That’s it for the moment; stand by for incoming, in more ways than one!

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